SoftBank Group aims to capitalize on soaring demand for the computing capacity that underpins artificial intelligence applications. SoftBank Group agreed to buy private equity firm DigitalBridge Group for about $3 billion in cash, part of the Japanese conglomerate's push to invest in data centers and other digital infrastructure fueling the artificial intelligence boom. SoftBank will pay $16 per share for New York-listed DigitalBridge, the companies said in statement Monday, confirming an earlier Bloomberg News report. The offer -- valued at $4 billion, including debt -- is a 65% premium to DigitalBridge's closing share price on Dec. 4, the last trading day before talks between the two companies were reported. SoftBank's billionaire founder Masayoshi Son aims to capitalize on soaring demand for digital infrastructure, driven by the AI boom.

Acquisition would further expand SoftBank's investments in artificial intelligence as it tries to center itself in the boom SoftBank Group will acquire digital infrastructure investor DigitalBridge Group in a deal valued at $4bn, the companies said on Monday, as the Japanese investment firm looks to deepen its AI-related portfolio. The acquisition would expand SoftBank's exposure to digital infrastructure as the Japanese conglomerate is positioning its portfolio to focus on artificial intelligence. SoftBank's billionaire founder Masayoshi Son is seeking to capitalize on surging demand for the computing capacity that underpins artificial intelligence applications. DigitalBridge invests in digital infrastructure sectors such as datacenters, cell towers, fiber networks, small-cell systems and edge infrastructure, with a portfolio including companies such as Vantage Data Centers, Zayo, Switch and AtlasEdge. Founded in 1991 as real estate-focused Colony Capital, the firm pivoted under CEO Marc Ganzi into digital infrastructure and rebranded as DigitalBridge in 2021 after shedding most of its legacy property assets.

Two Manchester based companies are joining the UK's first Applied AI growth programme, as it is also reveals that UK AI investment is reaching record highs. Investment in AI technology grew almost six-fold from 2014 to 2018, with UK AI scaleups raising almost double that of France, Germany and the rest of Europe combined last year. In the first 6 months of this year, AI funding in the UK has already surpassed 2018's figures. As a result, the UK is currently third in the world for raising investment in AI, behind only China and the U.S. respectively for the number of AI companies in operation during 2019. Dream Agility and DigitalBridge have been identified as one of the UK's future leading AI companies. Elizabeth Clark, CEO, Dream Agility, Manchester commented: "We're delighted to have made it onto the Applied AI scheme.

It's difficult to renovate a bathroom. There are a thousand things to do, all of which a typical customer has never done before. This problem is compounded by the imagination gap. When a customer views a product, it can be difficult for them to picture how that product will look in their bathroom. Is there a good place for that product?

DigitalBridge is an award-winning computer vision and machine learning company building industry-leading space planning and room visualisation tools for kitchens, bedrooms and bathrooms. With investment from the likes of UK retailer John Lewis, we are pioneering new techniques in machine learning and computer vision to truly disrupt the world of retail. You can see our platform on planmybathroom.diy.com. We're on a mission to help anyone design beautiful living spaces for themselves and their family, no matter how little design experience they have - and we're looking for a Research Scientist (Machine Learning) to help get us there.

AI startup DigitalBridge has created an app, which is designed to help people visualise how their home would look with a new lick of paint or some new furniture before making a decision they might later regret. The idea for the app came from David Levine and his wife, who wanted to redecorate the dining room in their Manchester (UK) home, but couldn't picture how any of the designs would look on their walls. The technology uses GPU-accelerated machine learning and computer vision to let people visualise how wallpaper, a coat of paint, new furniture and other home decor would look in their own rooms. "I figured I wasn't the only person who couldn't imagine what wallpaper would look like in a room," Levine said. In an independent survey conducted for DigitalBridge, about a third of shoppers said they'd delayed or cancelled decorating projects because they couldn't picture how items would look in their own homes.